LTFRB to hear TNVS fare hike petition April 3

MANILA, Philippines — The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board will hear the fare hike petition filed by transportation network companies on April 3.

The Board decided to hold a consolidated hearing on the fare increases proposed by Uber and Grab, LTFRB chairman Martin Delgra III said in a radio interview Friday morning.

“We aim to come up with a general fare structure for this kind of denomination,” Delgra said. “One perspective we are looking at is the improvement of TNVS services.”

Grab has asked that, in addition to the base rate of P40, its fares be increased from P10-PHP14 per kilometer to PHP11-PHP15 per kilometer and its time charge increased to P2.10 from the current P2 per minute.

On the other hand, Uber is seeking an increase from P5 per to P12 kilometer.

Both ridesharing firms said fare hikes are necessary in order to mitigate the impact of the recent series of oil price hikes and higher excise taxes under the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion law.

The LTFRB said it is also eyeing an increase in the number of applications for TNVS units — from the current 300 to 400-500 daily — after resuming acceptance on Monday.

Last February, the LTFRB has issued a memorandum setting the common supply base for TNVS units at 66,750.

The common supply base was set by the Board considering various factors such as unserved demand, number coding scheme, and churning rate or the number of inactive drivers for the past few months. It will be reviewed every three months.

There are 59,020 accredited TNVS units for both Uber and Grab whose Certificates of Public Convenience were not processed by the LTFRB due to the moratorium on applications last July 2017.